Nichole Cable: In our minds, hearts

Kristine Wiley, mother of Nichole Cable, holds a picture of her daughter and hugs a pillow that belonged to Nichole at the family's Glenburn home on Tuesday after a body believed to be Nichole's was found in Old Town.

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On Mother’s Day, a daughter went missing. More than a week later, on May 20, a body believed to be Nichole Cable, 15, of Glenburn, was found near the Stillwater River in Old Town. Today, a rainy day, police said they charged 20-year-old Kyle Dube of Orono with murder. We do not know many things, such as why such pain is inflicted. We cannot know the grief of Cable’s family and friends.

We do know that no parents should have to bear the uncertainty of not knowing where their child is. No parents should have to then learn their child is not missing but believed to be dead. No parents should have to learn their child was possibly murdered. Over the last week, people across the state have reached out to Cable’s mother, Kristine Wiley, and her husband, Jason Wiley, to share their remorse and sympathies. We add our own.

Maine is a relatively peaceful state, with low rates of crime. But when a daughter is killed, those statistics don’t matter. Maine feels each loss strongly. Neighbors extend their support. More than 500 men, women and children volunteered to search for Cable in Glenburn, Hudson and west Old Town on Sunday. People posted fliers on utility poles and in businesses. Federal, state, county and municipal authorities worked the case.

Hundreds of people posted on a special Facebook page to say they were praying for the family. “Just sheer grief,” wrote one woman. “God, please help this family fast, and surround them with everyone’s love,” wrote someone else. Another: “Lights on in Winterport.” And then: “You were so beautiful and loving. You always were there for me, and I miss you so much. I’m sorry we were too late.”

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There are simple but important ways people can help. Keep Cable’s memory intact. If appropriate, reach out to her family. Take care of yourself, and make time for loved ones. Help build the kind of place in which you would want to raise a child. Be a part of your community. Do what you love. Do what Cable, presumed dead, can no longer do. Pursue joy. Recognize that time is limited.

Lucille Clifton wrote a poem called “ blessing the boats” that could also serve as an elegy: “may the tide / that is entering even now / the lip of our understanding / carry you out / beyond the face of fear.” At this time, that is our wish for Cable, that she be beyond the face of fear. May her loved ones know their communities are hoping for justice and holding tight the memory of a daughter of Maine.